


Such Great Heights

by anovelblogwrites



Series: oops i fell into the elriel trashcan [1]
Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Cotton Candy Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-11
Updated: 2017-07-11
Packaged: 2018-11-30 18:32:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11469261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anovelblogwrites/pseuds/anovelblogwrites
Summary: Elain didn’t depend on Azriel like she used to--when she was heartbroken and terrified, and felt as though the shadowsinger was the only one who understood her--but she still spent much of her time in his company.





	Such Great Heights

**Author's Note:**

> i was sold on this ship the moment sjm decided to point out that elain's dress matched the color of azriel's siphons in acomaf. and now that i've read acowar, i have enough #receipts to officially set sail. by which, i mean write all the fanfic. oops. 
> 
> also, the title for this is also the name of a song by iron & wine. lovely tune.

As if she truly were the flower everyone compared her to, Elain started to grow after the war with Hybern ended. Her roots found purchase in this new land. If she was a flower, the rest of the court was a garden. It grew with her, total strangers became something more, until it wasn’t just her and Nesta against the world. 

In Morrigan she found a new sister, as fiercely protective as those she already had, and a wonderful dance partner. She could always count on Cassian to laugh at her jokes--particularly those at Nesta’s expense. And she had Azriel. 

Elain didn’t depend on Azriel like she used to--when she was heartbroken and terrified, and felt as though the shadowsinger was the only one who understood her--but she still spent much of her time in his company. 

An hour ago, dinner plates had been swapped out for playing cards and dice. Elain had snuck out shortly after Nesta threatened to stuff said dice down Cassian’s throat. Azriel followed, keeping Elain company as she tended to her garden. Some of the flowers native to the Night Court only bloomed in the dark. She clipped the ones that had wilted, and dropped them into the basket Azriel was carrying. 

The basket was nearly full by the time they’d covered the expanse of the garden. Azriel sat it down at Elain’s feet and lowered himself onto the bench next to her. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, and although the cold no longer posed a threat to her Fae body, she wasn’t impervious to it. Her shiver had been infinitesimal, but within a breath, Azriel draped a wing over her shoulders. She smiled gratefully at him, her cheeks dimpling. 

“The stars are beautiful tonight,” Azriel suddenly commented, and immediately winced. 

Over five hundred years, Azriel had become an accomplished warrior and an integral part of his Court, yet he still hadn’t mastered the art of small talk. Luckily, Elain had. With an amused smile, she recovered, “Is the night sky here truly better than anywhere else?” 

“Yes,” he answered without hesitation. “I’ve been many places, and…” Azriel trailed off. He was studying her face with an acute, yet subtle gaze that only a spymaster could achieve, when he continued, “The sky above us is one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen in my life.” 

Something about the way he said it made Elain’s cheeks flame. As if it would keep Azriel from noticing, she turned away from him, angling her face to the sky. 

“I never really look up at them much,” she mused after a moment. “The stars, I mean.” 

“Why is that?” 

Elain brushed her fingers gingerly over the glowing blue petals of the flower on the plant nearest to her. She saw the lights of the sprawling city below. She could hear her family’s laughter across the garden. 

“There just always seems to be so much more happening down here.” 

Azriel considered her answer for a moment before a mischievous smile spread across his face. “Then I think you need to get a closer look.” 

Before Elain could process what he was implying, Azriel was scooping her up and kicking off the ground in one swift motion. They rocketed skyward, the wind rushing around them. Elain screamed, and even though she could feel Azriel had a tight grip on her, she fumbled for something to hold onto. Her arms found Azriel’s neck, and instantly locked around him. 

They stopped ascending when her sister’s home was the size of a dollhouse. Azriel’s wings beat steadily, keeping them suspended. The garden below was a sea of darkness. In every other direction, as far as she could see--stars. Big, shining things in more colors than she thought possible. Blue, violet, pink, even green. They swirled together, emitting a collective light that tinted the dark sky with ribbons of color. She looked around in open-mouthed wonderment. 

A massive silver one went whizzing by, and she let go of Azriel to point at it. “Did you see that?” she exclaimed breathlessly, still marveling at the glittering trail it left behind. 

Azriel responded with only a self-satisfied smile. 

“Don’t give me that look,” Elain griped, nudging him teasingly with her elbow. 

“I don’t know what you mean,” Azriel’s smile only grew. Elain crossed her arms, and raised a challenging eyebrow. 

“You look like your sister when you do that.” 

“....Which one?” 

Azriel had a deep laugh that rumbled through his chest. It seemed to echo through the endless sky, like the whole world was meant to hear it. 

“You were right, though.” Elain admits softly, transfixed by the constellations as they went by. “It’s a lot different than it is below.” 

“It makes me happy to hear you say that.” 

Azriel was native to the Night Court. He had grown up on mountains so tall, the stars were only an arm’s reach away. Those great wings keeping them aloft had carried him thousands of miles. “I imagine you feel very at home up here.” 

He nodded. “As soon as I learned how to fly, I didn’t want to come down.” 

Elain thought of Nesta calling her inside after long afternoons spent in the garden with the sun shining on her back. Her reluctance to listen to her sister. This must be the same for him. Like her garden, the open sky was a place just for him. It wasn’t just about the beauty of the stars. Just like gardening wasn’t just about pretty petals. 

She could feel it now as they flew together. The world and its troubles were far away; it was just the stars, the quiet, and the two of them. They stayed suspended in that serenity, chasing falling stars and making up constellations, until Elain’s eyelids started to droop. Ever observant, Azriel asked, “Are you ready to go back?” 

She nodded, just as the yawn she’d been fighting against escaped her. She wondered briefly how far away from home they’d wandered. Her head felt heavy, so she nestled into the crook of Azriel’s neck. His skin was warm, despite the cold air. She wrapped her arms around him again. Lightly this time, because she wasn’t holding on for dear life anymore. She held him because she knew that the blissful tranquility enveloping her wasn’t just from the stars. She wanted to let it consume her just a while longer. 

“But you don’t have to hurry.”


End file.
